Christopher Marsh

Christopher Marsh is a Professor of History at Queen's University Belfast's School of History, Anthropology, Philosophy and Politics. He specializes in early modern English social and cultural history, with a focus on religion, gender relations, and the history of popular music. Marsh supervises PhDs on English history (1450-1750) and British/Irish traditional music. He launched the 100Ballads.org website in 2024, digitizing 17th-century ballads with recordings and contextual materials.

• Education: Nine years at Cambridge University

Research interests include ballad analysis, Protestant martyrology, and musical practices among non-elite populations. Recent work explores how ballads mediated religious conflicts and social norms. His 2010 book Music and Society in Early Modern England remains influential. Media engagements include BBC World Service features and podcasts like That Shakespeare Life.

Grants include the AHRC-funded 'Best Selling Ballads' project (2011-2012) and the Leverhulme Trust's 'Hit Songs in 17th-Century England' (2012-2017). Supervised projects span ballad historiography and museum studies. His work contributes to UN SDG 16 (Peace, Justice) through historical conflict analysis.